7 Days Drabbles
by The Rose Society
Summary: Cowritten with Mizu. The 8 drabbles written for 7 Days on LJ's ichiruki community in celebration of Rukia's birthday.
1. Snow

Drabble 1:

Title: Snow

Words: 632

Authors: Mizu and The Rose Society

Two years, three months, sixteen days, eight hours, thirty-two minutes and forty seconds.

That was how long Rukia and Ichigo had been married for. It was a lovely afternoon ceremony on a warm mid-spring day. She'd looked every bit the blushing bride, thanks to Ishida's expert needlework.

Life after the war against Aizen and the Arrancar was pretty quiet. Every so often, Hollows came into the real world. Since Rukia and Ichigo were the shinigami assigned to Karakura-cho, they were dispatched to take care of the Hollow, but it was easy work, especially since both were beyond Captain level in their powers now.

Tonight was Rukia's turn to patrol alone, since Ichigo was studying for finals. He was a bit reticent to let her go alone, until a few (loving) kicks to the head convinced him that Rukia could handle things on her own.

She'd purified three hollows tonight already, and it hadn't even been out for more than two hours. Yet she still felt more energized than ever, smiling as another soul found its way to soul society. She couldn't even remember when the last time she'd actually enjoyed her job so much. The thought alone made her suspicious as to whether someone had put something into her tea this evening.

Wrapping her slender fingers around the hilt of her Zanpakuto, she pursed her lips as she scanned the area for more spirit energy fluctuations indicative of hollow activity. "Just us girls tonight, ne, Shirayuki?"

Just then, Rukia felt another Hollow enter her area. Instead of chasing some wayward soul, this Hollow immediately focused on Rukia and her powerful spiritual energy. "Kekeke...shinigami," the Hollow said while drooling with hunger. Rukia smirked and wrapped her fingers around the hilt. Finally, at least this Hollow was strong enough to warrant her at least calling on Shirayuki's shikai form. As she drew her sword, however, it was not the dazzingly beautiful white blade she expected. Instead, it was a regular sword. She frowned and would have pondered it more if the Hollow hadn't begun its attack.

After Rukia dispatched the last Hollow, she returned to the roof of the apartment complex she and Ichigo lived in. Keeping her senses honed on any danger, she drew her zanpakuto again and frowned even more at Shirayuki's absence. What was wrong?

"Getting tired tonight, Shirayuki?" Shirayuki did not respond, as usual. Rukia grimaced, expectant but still slightly annoyed at her Zanpakuto's indifference. "What happened tonight? We were doing so well," she sighed, placing Shirayuki on the ground in front of her as she sat herself cross-legged in front of it.

One minute, she was eyeing Shirayuki critically and in the next, she found herself in a field of snow. The horizon, dark and looming, was devoid of any celestial body. Slightly panicked, Rukia looked around quickly, surveying her environment. It looked the same in every direction.

"What did you expect? You're demanding more energy from me this evening than usual, and I don't know why," a feminine voice said icily from behind. "Last time I felt this weak was when you had that rock lodged in you," she said, deliberately making her irritation evident.

"Shira…yuki?" Rukia turned to face the woman with the cold voice. She wasn't surprised to see that her appearance was every bit as frosty as her voice. Long, black hair was partially pinned up by a bone-white gnarled hairstick. Loose ebony locks framed a sweetheart face the color of bleached ivory. Willowy limbs were adorned in a thin shift equally colorless as her skin, detailing every bony contour. She looked unhealthy.

Suddenly, Rukia felt Shirayuki's face painfully close to her own. Shirayuki's was breath frigid next to her skin as she whispered, "The one and only."

Rukia shivered. It began to snow.


	2. Possibilities

Drabble 2:

Title: Possibilities

Words: 339

Authors: Mizu and The Rose Society

The next morning, Rukia woke up with a distinct feeling of dread. Ichigo had left early that morning for his finals, kissing his sleeping wife on the head softly before leaving the apartment. Unable to sleep after her disturbing conversation with Shirayuki, she at least feigned sleep while Ichigo got ready in the morning so that he wouldn't worry about her. As soon as he left, she got dressed and headed out the door. 'Shirayuki said that something was interfering with our bond,' Rukia thought as she made her way to the convenience store. 'To interfere with a shinigami and her bond to her zanpakuto, there are only a few reasons...'

'But it can't be.' Rukia frowned. 'Can it?'

She'd come back from the convenience store with a few necessities and at present, was digging herself a trench as she paced back and forth down the hallway of their little apartment. She should put away the groceries, she thought, thinking of the eggs she'd abandoned on the table.

She decided that she was going to make some tamagoyaki tonight, as she normally did every Thursday evening. She was going to use the sake she normally used for cooking. She was going to have a normal dinner with Ichigo. She was going to have normal conversation asking how his last final went over cups of celebratory sake. She was going to make sweet love to her (cutely) drunk husband since things were always extra exciting when he was intoxicated.

She smiled to herself, absolutely delighted that she'd formulated a perfectly logical itinerary for the evening. She grabbed the bottle of shampoo she'd purchased at the convenience store, and brought it to the bathroom. Humming a song out of tune, she entered her bathroom, feeling extra light. Something, however, caught the corner of her eye as she placed the bottle of shampoo in its new home next to the conditioner.

"Please tell me that's not what I think it is."

It was a thin blue line.

So much for drinking tonight.

To be continued…


	3. The New and Improved Gigai!

Drabble 3:

Title: The New and Improved Gigai Version 4.0! Now Adjustable!

Item: a can of soda

Words: 941

Authors: Mizu and The Rose Society

Gigai were once touted as one of the most innovative products of the century. They were a shinigami's best friend in the real world, particularly when one needed to blend in with humans. They fit well and generated decent 'adhesion' between soul and gigai so you wouldn't accidentally walk away from your gigai without realizing it was in an unmoving crumpled heap behind your soul form. Urahara was often fond of this particular invention when it was first introduced, and took every chance to make adjustments to further improve the base model.

Anatomically correct gigai, untraceable gigai, and easy-to-wear gigai were all accredited to his name, for which he was immensely proud of. He figured he knew everything there was to know about gigai until a rather irate petite woman dragged her disgruntled husband into his store.

"URAHARA!" Rukia bellowed unnecessarily. She could sense Ichigo cringe as he quietly took another sip out of a can of soda. It was the only thing Ichigo managed to grab for breakfast when Rukia had hauled him out of bed at dawn to rampage down to Urahara's store.

Both Jinta and Ururu were eyeing the young couple curiously, wondering what all the commotion was about. One look at Rukia's disgruntled face had convinced Tessai to get the manager even before she had started bellowing. WIth a yawn hidden behind his fan, the blonde lazily made his way to his geta. But before he could so much as inquire what Rukia was interested in this fine morning, the dark-haired shinigami had already fisted the back of Urahara's collar and dragged him to an examination room.

Ichigo didn't even raise an eyebrow at his wife's antics. Rubbing a hand through his messy orange hair, Ichigo sat on a nearby box of goods and frowned even more at the early morning sunshine. Yesterday, he had spent a lot of the day taking finals and was finally looking forward to enjoying a meal with his wife. However, even though Rukia had prepared something rather tasty, Ichigo felt he was eating dinner with (God forbid) Byakuya; there was no conversation, no eye contact, nothing.

Bedtime had been an entirely silent affair as well, with Rukia slipping into her usagi-themed pajamas and nodding off without even a goodnight kiss. Ichigo frowned even more at that (Jinta snickered and whispered to Ururu that Ichigo was pouting like a baby). The sounds of a foot meeting a rear end were the only thing heard until finally, the door hiding the interior of the store from the storage room slid open, revealing the geta-boushi. Urahara didn't even bat an eye as to why Jinta was busy rubbing his rear or why Ichigo had a foot raised to the air even as the orange haired man was taking another swig from his soda can. Grinning madly, the blonde began to pound Ichigo's back as he loudly proclaimed, "CONGRATULATIONS, KUROSAKI-SAN! YOU ARE GOING TO BE A FATHER!"

A cloud of soda spittle flew at Jinta's flabbergasted face as Ururu ducked quietly next to him. "NANI????" Came Ichigo's only coherent reply.

Rukia scowled. "COULD YOU LOOK A LITTLE HAPPIER?!" Rukia kicked Ichigo in the head, looking anything but happy.

"How did this happen?" Ichigo said carefully, rubbing the side of his head. He would be sporting a bruise from this one. Love, particularly from Rukia, hurt. Rukia gave him a venomous look in response, and pulled out her sketchpad from an oversized tote bag.

"Ichigo, dear," she said, suddenly sweet as honey, attempting to hide the malice in her voice in response to his bewilderment. "You remember when we went to soul society a month ago? Well we got a little bored, and it was cold for a summer night so…" She lifted a pastel coloured drawing of a beige coloured barn that Ichigo could only assume was a representation of Byakuya's guest house. In the dead centre however, was an image that made Ichigo blush down to his neck.

"Oh god…" He muttered, "Is that?"

"Mmhmm."

He raised an eyebrow at the level of detail Rukia had decided to include. "And is that…?"

"Yes, dear."

"Oh… Hey, wait a minute, don't you think that looks a little smaller than it— !"

"Please Kurosaki-san! There are children here!" Exclaimed Urahara, covering Ururu's ears. "However, I am rather appalled that you had the nerve to do it on Kuchiki-san's property."

Rukia softened a little at the dazed expression on her husband's face. She took his hand in her own and in a gentle voice said, "The bad news is that my gigai is having issues adjusting to my pregnancy. Even Shirayuki is complaining…Ichigo?"

She knew that he'd stopped listening to her. She opened her mouth to reprimand him but the telltale gleam in his eyes told her that it wasn't the wisest course of action at present.

"I'm going to be a daddy," Ichigo said quietly. Rukia didn't miss the wide grin spread across his face and decided that it was one of the most beautiful things she'd ever seen. "Rukia, I'm going to be a daddy!" He picked her up in a tight hug, burying his nose into her hair. "I'm going to be a daddy!" He repeated over and over, until even Rukia's eyes were gleaming with unshed tears.

Urahara smiled, quietly herding his group away to give the couple a moment of privacy. 'A few modifications to the anatomically correct gigai model should do the trick', he thought, fanning himself as he walked toward the kitchen for a cup of tea. 'I wonder if there would be a market for a multi-functional adjustable gigai…'

To be continued.


	4. The Way to Rukia's Heart is

Drabble 4:

Title: The Way to Rukia's Heart is Through Her Stomach

Words: 445

Authors: Mizu and The Rose Society

"Ichigo..."

Silence.

"Ichigo..."

Groan.

"ICHIGO!" He'd definitely heard her. No doubt even the neighbors heard her. He wouldn't be surprised if even the building next to them heard her. Regardless, he was determined to keep his eyes shut. 'For the love of god, woman, it's the third time this evening already!' he thought, refusing to get up again to satisfy her next request. At first they were amusing, but waking up every two hours was really pushing it.

"...You better be sick or dead," she said venomously. "...because I want grilled mackerel with sweet azuki bean paste, and I want it _now_."

Ichigo bit his pillow, either to push back his urge to scream in frustration or to stop the bile rising in disgust, he couldn't decide. He seriously contemplated feigning sickness or death but another slender and bony finger poking at his ticklish spot made him jerk onto all fours.

"Glad to see you are still alive, HUSBAND," bit out the smirking woman next to Ichigo. "I'm hungry."

The furrow between Ichigo's brows got even deeper. "Rukia, look at these bags under my eyes," said the orange haired man as two long fingers pointed at said bags. "I didn't even have these at finals. I got them over break. And why? Because just tonight, you've wanted grilled mackerel with sweet azuki bean paste, unagi on top of green tea ice cream, and tofu and marshmallows. This past week, it has been honeydew tempura, beef tripe in strawberry sauce, and roe topped chocolate cake. No one in Karakura-cho makes such disgusting things."

Rukia glared at her offending husband. Ichigo could feel her considerable reiatsu rising. Uh oh...he was about to meet Death in an all out battle royale. But Ichigo knew no fear. He had faced Zaraki Kenpachi, stared down Kuchiki Byakuya, fought countless Arrancars, Hollows, and defeated Aizen Sousuke. Surely his wife would be no problem to deal with. Turning over, Ichigo flopped onto his back, head on the pillow, ready to resume sleep, confident in his victory. Unfortunately, he cracked open one brown eye in order to gloat. It was all over.

Deep azure eyes filled with unshed tears entered his sight. Ichigo shot up like a spring, back to the wall, as far away from the bed as possible. There, seated so daintily, was his evil wife, her legs tucked to the side, her face averted, a handkerchief in hand as she wiped at the corners of her eyes. "I can't believe you would say that! Here I am, carrying your unborn child, merely asking for some sustenance and you refuse. I gave up the luxury of the Kuchiki compound to live in a tiny Karakura-cho apartment with you. I gave up seeing Renji, my brother, and all my friends on a daily basis to be stationed here with you. I..."

Ichigo hung his head. "All right, woman. I'll call Inoue up. She'll probably have that stuff."

Rukia grinned.

"At least she isn't asking me to go fish up the mackerel and harvest the beans myself…" Ichigo sighed, getting up to change his clothes. "The things I do for my wife," he muttered, feeling an odd mixture of tenderness laced with irritation.

"Come back soon darling!"

"Yeah yeah, one grilled mackerel with sweet azuki bean paste coming right up."

"Extra sweet azuki bean paste, please!"

Sigh.

"Ok, extra sweet azuki bean paste."

To be continued.


	5. Break Time

Drabble #5

Keyitem: a carousel

Title: Break Time

Wordcount: 290

Authors: Mizu and The Rose Society

Out of the corner of his eyes, Ichigo noticed that Rukia was sitting on one of the horses in the nearby carousel. "Oi," he grunted.

Rukia lifted her eyebrow. "Yes?"

Ichigo pointed at the carousel with his zanpakuto. "Tired? I TOLD YOU—"

A flying object, thrown by his wife, cut Ichigo off. "My ankles are just a little swollen, is all." She gracefully tugged on the sleeves of her shinigami robes. "It is amazing that the perverted shop keeper's fully adjustable gigai even has swollen ankles like my spirit form. I had hoped to have a reprieve while in my gigai."

"Here, let me look at that," Ichigo said gruffly. "But this is all your fault – I told you to stay behind to rest, but would you listen to me, nooo—" He scooped her up in his arms, and placed her on a stationary seat on the carousel. Propping her feet up on his knees, he began to gently knead her sore calves.

Rukia glared at him, her elephant-ankles adding further to her irritation. "Don't make me remind you that you had just as much _participation_ in the making of our child just as much as I did. If anything, you should have swollen ankles too," she said airily, aiming at his ankles with the hilt of her zanpakuto. His legs dodged her attack, but all the same, he never stopped applying gentle pressure to her legs.

"Ichigo?" She sighed, forgetting why she was annoyed with him as his fingers soothingly rubbed sore ankles.

"Mmm?"

"I love you."

He paused in his ministrations to smile at her. "Yeah, I know."

He knew that he loved her too. Swollen ankles, rounded belly, irritated disposition, strange food cravings and all.

To be continued.


	6. Seven Little Words

Drabble #6

Title: Seven Little Words

Words: 957

Rating: uhh PG-13 for swearing?

Authors: Mizu and The Rose Society

"My brother wants to speak with you."

Four months ago, those seven little words seemed so innocuous. After all, Ichigo had already approached the proud Kuchiki heir and asked for his permission for Rukia's hand in marriage. Of course, having Rukia there to help persuade Kuchiki Byakuya to accept Ichigo's suit rather than fillet him was helpful. Since their marriage, it had seemed that Ichigo and Byakuya had reached some level of civility, if not familial accord.

However, four months ago, it had all changed.

Rukia and Ichigo were kneeling in the formal receiving room of the Kuchiki manor; across the table knelt Kuchiki Byakuya, his blue-gray eyes softening at Rukia's ecstatic expression.

"Nii-sama," began Rukia as she bowed. "We have great news to tell you." She peeked at her husband from her prostrate position and noticed that Ichigo hadn't moved. A quick elbow in the gut convinced Ichigo to quickly get with the program.

"Oi, Byakuya." Ichigo sketched out a quick bow (more of a slight dip of the head) and promptly moved to the matter at hand. "You are going to be an uncle."

"ICHIGO—" hissed Rukia. She quickly turned to look at Byakuya's face but to her surprise, his expression had not changed from the placid tranquility he always wore.

Byakuya nodded. "I see. This calls for a celebration. Rukia, please inform the staff to prepare a celebratory dinner in honor of this great occasion." Shocked and confused that her brother was taking things so well. Rukia left the room quietly, sliding the shoji door closed.

Ichigo glanced at Byakuya. 'He's really mellowed out over time,' mused Ichigo.

The twenty-eighth head of the Kuchiki clan met Ichigo's ponderous stare with his usual look of calm indifference. However, Ichigo of all people knew better. Byakuya was never someone to be underestimated. Dealings with him were much like risking stepping into still, dark waters. You never knew if it was deep enough to drown in.

"I did not want to distress Rukia in her," Byakuya paused lightly, "_condition_." He stared intently at Ichigo, who was becoming more and more unnerved by the second. Ichigo's reaction to this exchange emerged as a scowl. Perhaps his brother-in-law didn't mellow out as much as he thought he did.

"But," continued Byakuya, "I do recall the conditions in which I promised her to you. Kurosaki Ichigo, my question is, do _you_ remember?"

Ichigo furrowed his eyebrows, thinking. Honestly, all he could remember was how happy Byakuya had (grudgingly) agreed to give them his blessing. He did recall some clauses but had decided they were unimportant at the time compared to the fact that he was properly engaged to Rukia.

"But of course, you probably forgot, Kurosaki Ichigo," Byakuya noted with seeming indifference.

Ichigo knew better than that. After all, every alarm in his head flashed the words "Danger! Danger! Mortal life in peril!" in flashing red lights.

"Let me remind you right now the promise you made a little over two years ago. You were to finish your schooling. You were to find a job. You were to provide for my sister in that tiny closet that you call your home," Byakuya said with a deadly murmur. "You now come here to tell me that you have _debauched_ my sister _ahead_ of schedule?"

Ichigo gulped, unsure of how to respond. As usual, he said whatever was on his brain without regard of the Kuchiki clan head's presence. "Well, you can't take away a blessing…" He muttered, scratching his head thoughtfully.

Gracefully, Byakuya stood upright and walked (glided) toward a beautiful wall scroll hanging nearby. He tilted his head artfully; he perfectly portrayed the picture of a handsome nobleman pondering the details of a work of art, not the angry brother-in-law Ichigo knew him to be. "And what of the news I heard from Shihouin-san, that you had debauched my sister on Kuchiki property?"

At that, Ichigo began to turn red from embarrassment. Damn Yoruichi-san and her big mouth! He flew to his feet and pointed a finger at Byakuya. "Look here, you can't undo-"

"IT SHOULDN'T HAVE EVEN HAPPENED!!" Byakuya's frightening reiatsu was climbing. Ichigo smirked. Well, his powers had developed after the war and there was no way Byakuya was going to intimidate him with a little display of power. His hand went to his back for the comforting hilt of Zangetsu. Only…

…his hand met with empty air. Ichigo cursed. Rukia had insisted that they come in formal attire and that meant that 'a zanpakuto as big as my husband would be poor form'. Too bad Byakuya didn't believe that it was rude to carry around his zanpakuto.

"Senbonzakura."

Ichigo ran for his life.

Ichigo's scowl grew even more. He still remembered crashing through the damn shoji walls and shun-po-ing his butt as far away from the Kuchiki manor as possible. Unfortunately, Byakuya had practiced his shun-po with the Goddess of Shun-po herself and Byakuya had additional "Protective Older Brother" fury on his side. Even though self-preservation was on Ichigo's side, his promise to Rukia not to kill Byakuya greatly hindered him. It had taken Renji and an entire squad of Eleventh Division soldiers to slow Byakuya down enough before Rukia could calm him down. Ichigo had still ended up in the Fourth Division hospital for quite some time.

'Damn bastard,' Ichigo thought. 'I should have just killed him. Instead, I let him chase me around all of Seireitei just so Rukia wouldn't be pissed off.'

So it was easy to see why today, four months after that incident, when Rukia approached Ichigo with those seven little words, he felt as if his heart stopped beating.

"My brother wants to speak with you."

…

"FUCK."

To be continued.


	7. The Gift that Keeps on Giving

Drabble #7

Title: The Gift that Keeps on Giving

Words: 851

Authors: Mizu and The Rose Society

It'd been five horrible months for the often overexcited and unnecessarily noisy orange plush lion—five horrible months of being stepped on, thrown against walls, and violated in more ways than he could count with his paws.

All right, perhaps that was considered situation normal for Kon, but even he could tell that his 'nee-chan' was being extra aggressive these days. Unable to blame any female for the wrongdoings in this world, he had to settle on directing his negativity to Ichigo.

Ah yes, Ichigo, the man who had single-handedly debauched his nee-chan. Much could be said for Kon's protectiveness over his favorite not-so-well-endowed shinigami, but regardless of his fierce declarations painting Ichigo as a pervert, he could do nothing but suffer regular abuse. One could even pin Kon to be responding much like Byakuya did when he was informed of his sister's pregnancy. Though, there were core differences between the two, namely the height, flowing black hair and stunning good looks.

…well, according to Kon, the last difference was more flattering to him than to Byakuya.

"Ichigo!" Kon pounced onto his target with an audible squeak, who was dozing peacefully on the sofa in the living room. His target blinked twice to clear his vision before responding to Kon with a scowl.

"What the hell," Ichigo got up, sending Kon flying, "do you want now?"

Kon bounced off the coffee table, landing with a squeak on hardwood floor. Giving Ichigo an offended glare, he stated, quite loudly and plainly, "You debauched my nee-chan!"

"Yeah, and what of it?" Responded Ichigo, clearly not seeing a problem.

Kon looked even more indignant. "What do you mean you don't see a problem? It's all _your_ fault that she's so mean now! All she's concerned about is the baby. Baby cribs, baby blankets, baby toys, _baby showers_! What ever happened me?"

Ichigo frowned, wondering how Kon even got into the apartment. Wasn't he supposed to be with Yuzu getting dressed up in little velvet dresses?

Before either opponent could resume hostilities, the door to the apartment opened and in walked Rukia. Her daily-changing form was attired in warm winter clothes to combat the light snow that was falling in Karakura. Her back turned to Ichigo, she removed her shoes and hung up her coat and scarf as she asked, "Ichigo, is there any milk? I feel like having a little hot chocola—"

"NEE-SAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

At the sound of the plushie yell, Rukia turned around in surprise. "EH? What are you doing he—"

In slow motion, Kon dove towards the Valley of the Gods before his beady eyes. Either Rukia's movements had been slowed by the cold or her condition, he neither knew nor cared, but he was able to cuddle perfectly in Rukia's cleavage despite the thick winter sweater she was wearing. As he moved his face from side to side, Kon noticed something most miraculous.

"AHH, Nee-san, your Valley of the Gods has become even more bountiful and lush and –ACK-"

With as much violence as he could exert, Ichigo wrenched the perverted stuffed animal away from his wife and threw him into the wall. Indignant squeaks were heard as Kon's body ping-ponged around the apartment. Gently, Ichigo led his irate wife towards the kitchen. "It's ok, Rukia. I'll take care of him. Remember, anger is bad for the baby." The incensed dark-haired shinigami retreated into the kitchen, as her grumbles of "rip!!!!", "stuffing", and "garbage disposal" faded into the distance.

With a murderous glare, Ichigo smashed his foot on top of Kon's tail, keeping the idiot from even now attempting to molest Rukia. A quick curl of the toes and a kick and there was Kon's stuffed neck getting un-stuffed in Ichigo's hand. Ichigo grinned maliciously as an idea occurred to him. Grabbing the phone in his other hand and squeezing Kon in the other, Ichigo quickly dialed Ishida Uryuu's number. "Oi, Ishida, I have an idea for a gift and I need your help."

"Oh that's so lovely, thank you Arisawa-san!" Rukia held up the Chappy-printed blanket. "How did you know?" Rukia beamed, running her fingers over the blanket to admire the soft material.

Tatsuki scratched her head, smiling and feeling a little awkward. "I saw you looking at it in the mall the other day, and figured it'd make a nice gift for the baby."

"Oh, this one is from Kurosaki-kun!" Piped Inoue Orihime energetically, thrusting a small package in front of Rukia. "Open this one next!"

Rukia eyed the box for a moment before deciding to take it into her hands and shaking it vigorously. Something akin to squeaking and possibly…_swearing_ (?) could be heard with each successive jolt.

"What the…?" Rukia looked at the box with confusion. Ripping the satin yellow ribbon and shredding the blue wrapping off, she dropped the box as it jostled on its own in her hands.

The top of the box tipped off revealing bunny ears and white jumpsuit with a frilly pink skirt intricately stitched onto a fairly outraged-looking Chappified Kon.

"WHEN I FIND HIM, ICHIGO IS A DEAD MAN!"

To be continued.


	8. The Family Jewels

Drabble #8

Title: The Family Jewels

Words: 1236

Authors: Mizu and The Rose Society

Spring is often overlooked by some as simply a transitional phase between winter and summer. The snow melts into rain and the velvet nights into daylight. White frosted fields shift to the green associated with new growth. In the little town of Karakura, the beginning of spring was just a natural awakening from the long hibernation of winter.

For Ichigo, it was definitely a wake-up call, particularly when Rukia shook him hard enough to rattle out his brain at four in the morning.

"Ichigo!" She hissed, gritting her teeth.

Ichigo shook his head, feeling slightly disoriented from his rude awakening. He expected it by now, as Rukia had her food cravings at the oddest of times. These cravings and her irritation associated with being hungry seemed to magnify, particularly at eight-and-a-half months into her pregnancy. Last week, she even had the audacity to ask for home-made mushroom-flavored ice cream and Korean barbeque at five in the morning. Ichigo didn't know a single thing about making ice cream and they didn't own a grill!

"What do you need?" He asked patiently, as it was now part of his daily routine to tend to the requests of his wife, no matter how impossible they seemed or how disgusting the food order was to him. At the very least, he'd tell himself, that it wasn't him carrying their unborn child. A rather unpleasant image of him being pregnant and enjoying a jar of pickles in curdled milk came to mind. Shaking his head vigorously to clear his mind of the image, he turned to his petite wife. How she never managed to get herself sick from all these odd food combinations was beyond his understanding.

"Ichigo, haven't you been listening?" She said, obviously agitated, her fingers digging into his arm painfully. Ichigo blinked, thoroughly baffled. Rukia looked more distressed than usual as she said as calmly as she could, "I need to go to the hospital, _now._"

After Ichigo and Rukia left for the hospital with Renji driving the car, Byakuya was left alone in the house. Certain events (read: the impudent and honor-less Kurosaki boy hadn't had enough self control to keep his grubby paws to himself and had debauched Byakuya's little sister ahead of schedule) had forced the Kuchiki noble to purchase a house in the human world for Rukia. There was no way a member of the noble Kuchiki family would be born in a tiny apartment in Karakura-cho, no matter what a certain orange-headed thorn in his side said.

Byakuya got dressed in pressed black slacks and a crisp light blue dress shirt. Who knew how long it would take for Rukia to give birth? After all, Kuchiki nobles never allowed themselves to be rushed. Making sure his kenseikan was in place, Byakuya walked calmly to the telephone to let Kurosaki's family know of the situation.

"NANI????"

Karin and Yuzu rubbed at their sleepy eyes as they walked into the kitchen. Their crazy father was screaming into the telephone.

"Oi, goat-face," yawned Karin. "Do you have any idea what time it is?"

Before Karin could punch him, Isshin slammed down the phone and turned to his daughters. The grin on his face was almost scarily huge and Yuzu could swear there were sparkles dancing around Isshin's head. His hands tucked under his chin, Isshin began wriggling like a schoolgirl with her first crush. He then flew to the poster in the living room and began sobbing happily at Masaki's picture. "Oh, anata, we're going to be grandparents! Our darling Rukia-chan is right now giving birth!"

Yuzu gasped. "We have to hurry to the hospital! Karin, hurry, go get dressed. We need to get there as soon as possible." Karin had already pounded up the stairs, not willing to miss being the first to see her nephew's or niece's face.

"Well, is it a niece or nephew?" Asked Yuzu excitedly, looking forward to her aunt duties, whatever they would be. "I'd really like a niece, so I could bake cookies with her!"

Ichigo looked dazedly at Yuzu, his mind preoccupied with a thousand other questions centered around his wife's well-being. Was she going to be all right? Was the baby going to be all right? Why haven't they called him in yet? What's taking so long? He shook his head. No, it would not do to dwell on questions that he could not answer. Tousling his little sister's hair affectionately, giving her a little half-smile. "I don't know yet. Rukia said she wanted it to be a surprise so we never checked."

Yuzu nodded. "So long as the baby is healthy, it doesn't matter if it's a boy or girl!" She declared.

"Yeah," Agreed Ichigo, "Thanks, Yuzu."

"Hmph! Well I think I'm getting a grandson," interjected Isshin, leaning in and whispered as (in)discreetly as he could to his son. "I can't wait until he gets his first zanpakuto!" Ichigo glared in response, obviously not sharing his father's certainty. "And what makes you so sure it's a boy, old man?"

"This!" Isshin said happily, his hand suddenly flew to Ichigo's crotch. He wiggled his fingers and Ichigo blanched, frozen in place. "The Kurosaki family jewels never fail to produce sons! You, my son, are a living example!"

"That," Ichigo removed his father's violating hand and grasped tightly around the wrist, "does NOT go there!"

The last thing Isshin remembered that evening was flying across the waiting room.

The large group of people excitedly entered the spacious private hospital room. Initially, Ichigo had protested the idea (and cost) of a private room but Byakuya had simply raised an aristocratic eyebrow, hand on the hilt of his Zanpakuto, and replied "You were the one to debauch my sister before you could financially provide for her needs. Therefore, you have no say in this." Grudgingly, Ichigo had stopped arguing.

They crowded around Rukia's form in the hospital bed. Ichigo was at Rukia's left side, holding her hand and giving her one of his rare smiles. Rukia let her eyes scan the group. Everyone was here. Karin, Yuzu, and Isshin (although unconscious) were all behind her husband, inquiring about her well-being. Her brother was at her right side, a small smile on normally expressionless face, and Renji was beaming behind him. Even Chad, Orihime, Uryuu, and Tatsuki had made it in time. She bit her lip against the upwelling of emotions inside her.

The nurse entered the room and immediately the large group quieted down. She congratulated the young mother and respectfully asked if Rukia would like to see her babies.

"Babies?" Everyone except Ichigo looked at Rukia in surprise. Instead of answering them, Rukia asked the nurse to bring in her children. With a gasp, the group watched as two nurses entered the room, carrying two baby girls. Yuzu started tearing up as Karin gave Rukia and Ichigo a thumbs up in congratulations. Both Rukia and Ichigo were given one of the girls.

"Surprise," Rukia said, her eyes on her bewildered brother and Renji.

Byakuya gently fingered the baby's head of dark hair. "Twins," he whispered, his voice awed.

Ichigo grinned. "Yup."

"What are their names," asked Orihime, even as she stood on her tiptoes to get a peek at the babies.

Rukia looked at Ichigo, her eyes softening. Her husband gave her a loving smile before answering.

"Kurosaki Masaki and Kurosaki Hisana."

The End.

(Finally.)


End file.
